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Meghan Markle waved to the crowds as she arrived for her first solo engagement as a member of the Royal Family.

She looked chic in a black Givenchy outfit as she ventured out without Harry or any other royals for the first time.

The 37-year-old actress joined guests at the opening of the Oceania exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in central London.

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The exhibition celebrates art from Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia, encompassing the vast Pacific region including New Guinea, Easter Island, Hawaii and New Zealand.

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Proud feminist Meghan, who married Prince Harry on May 19, has continually proved to be an independent woman.

Her first official solo appearance comes four months after becoming a member of the monarchy.

Kate Middleton carried out her first solo engagement – standing in for the Prince of Wales at a private fundraising dinner – in October 2011, six months after tying the knot and becoming the Duchess of Cambridge.

Meghan looks confident as she smiles and waves on her first solo engagement (Picture: PA)

The Duchess of Sussex was dressed in Givenchy for the event (Picture: PA)

Meghan and Harry are due to tour Australia, Tonga, Fiji and New Zealand in October and the duchess will be shown art from the four countries during her exhibition viewing (Picture: PA)

The Oceana exhibition marks the 250th anniversary of the Royal Academy, which was founded in 1768 – the year Captain James Cook set out on his first Endeavour expedition.

Meghan and Harry are due to tour Australia, Tonga, Fiji and New Zealand in October and the duchess will be shown art from the four countries during her exhibition viewing.

Later she will meet the exhibition’s curators, artists and descendants linked to the works on display, and view a short performance by Ngati Ranana, a Maori cultural group.

What Meghan wore

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, stepped out in an all black outfit (Picture: Rex Features)

Meghan played it fairly safe style-wise for her first solo engagement as a royal, elegant in a black, three-quarter length wool Givenchy dress with velvet detail and pleated, georgette balloon sleeves – though she broke alleged royal protocol by neglecting to wear the rather dated nude tights it’s claimed all royal women are doomed to wear.

Whatever the Queen may or may not think of her hosiery, Meghan’s choice to go bare-legged made the dress, currently on sale at Givenchy for £2,510, look a lot more contemporary than it would have with nude tights.

She matched the dress with a satin Givenchy clutch with jewelled clasp – also current collection and retailing at £1,390. Clearly quite the fan of the French fashion house, Meghan wore Givenchy for her wedding day too – a Givenchy Haute Couture dress designed by Clare Waight Keller, estimated to have cost around £380,000, and again at Royal Ascot a month after the wedding.

Her black, suede slingback pumps were the Deneuve by Aquazzura – another brand favoured by the new Duchess of Sussex – and are on sale at Harvey Nichols for £490. Meghan wore Aquazzura shoes on her wedding day too – and ‘recycled’ them some days later at the wedding of Harry’s cousin Celia McCorquodale. The nude stilettos Meghan wore for her engagement announcement were also Aquazzura. They have now sold out but similar styles cost around £600.

Her first solo appearance comes just four months after marrying Prince Harry in their Windsor wedding. Kate, Duchess of Cambridge carried her own first solo engagement six months after marrying into the royal family.